Chelsea to complete £17m signing after agreeing to special request

Chelsea have reached an agreement with Boca Juniors to sign Aaron Anselmino but the defender will remain on loan in Argentina for up to another year.

The Premier League club have agreed a deal worth $18 million (£14.1m) plus a further $4m (£3.1m) in add-ons for the 19-year-old, who has made only 10 first-team appearances for Boca.

Last month, Chelsea submitted their bid to Boca and the two clubs have been negotiating over when Anselmino will make the move to Stamford Bridge.

According to TyC Sports, Boca were keen for Anselmino to stay with them and Chelsea have now accepted a request from the Argentine club to keep him on loan until the summer of 2024.

The report adds that Chelsea do have a break clause as part of that agreement which allows them to bring him to the Premier League after six months.

Anselmino is now set to become Chelsea’s fifth signing of the summer window after Tosin Adarabioyo, who joined from Fulham last month on a free transfer, Marc Guiu, who cost £5m from Barcelona, Omari Kellyman, who arrived in a £19m deal from Aston Villa, and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, who was signed in a £30m deal from Leicester City this week.

Anselmino came through Boca’s academy and was handed his first-team debut a year ago but his appearances have been restricted due to hamstring issues.

Speaking after Anselmino made his debut, Boca’s head coach at the time, Jorge Almiron, praised the centre-back’s impact at such a young age.

‘It was a youngster’s turn to make his debut and he did really well,’ Almiron said.

‘He looked like he had 200 games under his belt. Going onto Boca’s pitch and playing the way he did, the truth is that it’s not easy.

‘I saw him in some training sessions because sometimes they come up to play with us. It was there that I saw him make some plays. Afterwards I saw him pairing up with [Marcos] Rojo and I was surprised. What he did today was normal for him, beyond his youth.

‘He is technically good, he is fast, he has a good pass. There are many qualities in him, but he needs time. I see him as a very healthy boy, quite correct and I think he has a great future.’

Speaking earlier this year Argentina legend, Juan Roman Riquelme, who is Boca’s president, backed Anselmino to become a ‘great’ defender for the national side.

‘He has developed a lot,’ Riquelme said.

‘With the growth, the head that he has and the desire to learn that he shows, he is on his way to being a great footballer.’

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